7 players facing their last stand with the Cardinals heading out of All-Star break

The St. Louis Cardinals have 12 days to decide the fate of their 2025 roster, how they'll end the John Mozeliak era, and how they'll begin the Chaim Bloom regime.

With the Cardinals' surprise 51-46 record at this point in the season and sitting just 1.5 games out of the NL Wild Card, the club has an argument to capitalize on that momentum and forgo moving valuable trade pieces to build for the future. On the other hand, most fans and media seem to have a similar view of the club — an impressive showing thus far, but not good enough to pass on building for the future.

With the Cardinals themselves stuck in this crossroads and unsure of what to do next, it has created an uncertain future for many players on their roster over the next two weeks.

I've identified seven players that, for various reasons, may be facing their "last stand" with the club over the next 12 days prior to the deadline, or the final two months of the season prior to the offseason. This may be due to the state of the team and the potential of them being trade chips, and for others, it's about whether or not they fit into the picture long-term.

Here are 7 players who are potentially facing their last stand with the Cardinals as the second half gets underway.

Erick Fedde

No matter what happens between now and the trade deadline, Erick Fedde's days as a Cardinal seem to be numbered. The Cardinals want to create a rotation spot for Michael McGreevy, and John Mozeliak has alluded to that happening by August at the latest.

Fedde has severely regressed on the mound this year, which makes it hard to imagine the Cardinals can salvage any value in a trade at this deadline, but they'll certainly try.

It's why we saw Fedde take the ball once again this past Saturday against the Atlanta Braves after two horrific starts that should have seen him lose his spot in the rotation. The Cardinals want to find a way to get something for him, and they believe that if he can bounce back in whatever remaining starts he has, well, that can be enough to get a team calling.

I'd be shocked if he's worth more than a very insignificant prospect, which is a shame considering the Cardinals should have been able to move him for more value in the offseason, but elected not to. McGreevy being held down in Memphis for the majority of this year has been a huge tragedy, as the Cardinals claimed development was top priority this year and McGreevy should have been doing so at the big league level for months now.

If the Cardinals cannot find a trade partner for Fedde, expect him to be designated for an assignment in hopes that a team picks up the rest of his contract for the remainder of the year.